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Agricultural Experiment Stations. 



Agricultural Experiment Stations. 



The Office of Experiment Stations of the United States 

 Department of Agriculture has recently published the result 

 of an enquiry as to the number of agricultural experiment 

 stations and kindred agencies in the principal countries of 

 the world. The total number of experiment stations and 

 similar institutions in the world, according to the result of 

 the enquiry, is about 780. This number includes, however, 

 many types of institution, such as experimental farms and fields, 

 laboratories for miscellaneous analysis, and co-operative enter- 

 prises ; but as a matter of convenience, all these agencies are 

 referred to collectively as " stations." 



The largest number of separate agencies for investigation 

 and experiment in agriculture is said to be found in Russia, 

 m spite of the fact that the movement is comparatively recent 

 there. There are 102 such establishments and 3 experimental 

 forests. Many of them are small demonstration fields, 

 established for the purpose of instructing the peasants or of 

 introducing new agricultural industries ; others serve as centres 

 for the production and distribution of improved varieties of 

 seeds and plants, and some are conducted as institutions for 

 research. There are also a number of stations for special crops, 

 such as tobacco, beet-sugar, silk, cotton, olive, tea, wine, and 

 other products. 



If the same class of institutions were designated as experiment 

 stations in the United States, the latter country would, it is 

 held, without doubt show the second largest number of agencies, 

 and probably the largest number of what are commonly regarded 

 as experiment stations— that is, eliminating laboratories, which 

 are purely for control or analytical work, demonstration fields 

 &c. But including all these agencies in the definition of 

 experiment stations, Germany is second in numerical order, and 

 France third. 



The total number of stations in Germany is given as 80, 

 which includes about a dozen control stations and laboratories 

 for miscellaneous analysis, together w ith a number of stations 

 for special industries. The only bond of union between the 

 German stations is the Association of Agricultural Experiment 



